War actors fight more than one foe

Published: Friday, May 19, 2000

MANASSAS, Va. {AP} Civil War enthusiasts who re-enact the battles between North and South are finding a mighty foe in suburban sprawl.

Re-enactors looking for land to mark the 140th anniversary next year of the First Battle of Manassas the first major clash between the North and South have been unable to find enough space free of telephone wires and subdivisions in Prince William County, where the fighting took place.

They have begun looking at other parts of the state.

"It's getting harder and harder to find a battlefield that's big enough and rural enough," said Dean Regan, whose company publishes the Civil War Times Illustrated and promotes re-enactments.

To recreate the Battle of Manassas, which had 4,690 casualties, the re-enactors want a site of 1,000 acres or more. Up to 15,000 participants and tens of thousands of spectators are expected on July 21, 2001.

"You want to be as close to the battlefield as you can because of the aura. Unfortunately here, we are in a bit of a land challenge," said Dave Henshell, who sells Civil War costumes and other gear.

"They're probably going to be hard-pressed to find anything in northern Virginia of that size and scale," said Bill Vaughan, a researcher at the Prince William County Department of Economic Development.

The 5,000-acre Manassas National Battlefield Park would be a logical choice, but national parks ban such events.

The ban was issued sometime after 1961, when the National Park Service allowed a ragtag group to recreate the epic battle. The event was unsafe, officials said.